It was snowing heavily outside. Bao Ni's uncle's Lin family restaurant was thriving with a constant stream of customers. They had hired another kitchen helper. Lin Feng had come over a few times during his holidays, but his schoolwork was heavy and the management was strict, so he always came and went in a hurry.
Bonnie ultimately did not agree to her uncle and aunt's suggestion. She only charged the normal rent of forty yuan a month, which was the market price.
As more people return to the city, more people are renting houses, and house prices are gradually rising.
Bonnie now has two courtyards for rent, both with single rooms. One is a traditional courtyard house where the rent is collected annually, and the other is the one her uncle rents. They also have fish in their fishpond, which they can sell for a monthly income. All things considered, Bonnie's family has a considerable annual income.
After December arrived, Bonnie was excited because winter vacation was just around the corner. Back on the island, Bonnie never found winter difficult, but since coming to Beijing, she wanted to hibernate and had become lazy.
"Honey, you guys are almost on holiday, right?"
"It'll be soon, in two weeks."
Bonnie hung up her scarf and hat; it was so cold.
Why are you home so early today?
"I went out to a meeting and came straight home. Sister Xu said we'd be having hot pot tonight, and I saw a lot of meat in the kitchen. Have they started slaughtering sheep in Dayang Village?"
Gu Ye thinks his wife is like a squirrel, always preparing enough food for the winter.
"Yes, it was delivered by the youngest son of the Yang family today. May I ask if there's anything else you need?"
Bonnie felt the temperature was low enough to store some chicken, duck, and goose meat. The outside was a natural cold storage, so she could freeze whatever she wanted without paying for electricity.
Actually, it's not necessary to store them. My uncle's restaurant needs these ingredients every day, so he can just bring them over. But the problem is that my uncle never asks for money, which won't do. I'll just buy some myself and freeze them.
Bonnie and Gu Ye chatted about household matters as the children gradually returned home.
"Are we having hot pot tonight? I can smell the spicy broth."
As soon as Sanqi walked in the door, she knew what they would be having for dinner.
"You have a dog's nose, even better than a police dog."
Bonnie laughed and scolded, then went to the kitchen to cut meat.
When Liu Jiu and Xuan Yi returned, the pot was already boiling, and the aroma filled the entire house.
"Brother Xuanyu is out of luck. This freshly killed mutton, sliced thinly, just dipped in the red broth, is something even a god wouldn't trade."
Sanqi prefers light dishes but loves spicy hot pot, which is a very apt description.
"Who says I'm not lucky enough to have this food? The aroma has even wafted into our dorm room."
Yuan Xuanyu pushed open the door and came in, hissing and shivering from the cold.
"Brother, hurry up, you've arrived just in time."
Xuan Yi quickly went to get his older brother a bowl and chopsticks; they would be eating soon.
"Why are you back? Is something wrong at school?"
Looking at Xuan Yi's expression, Bonnie didn't think it was anything important.
"Second Aunt, it's nothing. It's just been too cold these past few days, so I came back to get a blanket. I was trying to hold on a bit, since the holidays are coming up soon. But it's too cold at night, and I can't stand it anymore. Luckily, my professor had something to do this afternoon, so I had to skip a class and came back."
"You silly child, if I just made a phone call, would they have delivered it to you? It's so uncomfortable to catch a cold."
Bonnie was relieved to know that everything was alright and urged everyone to eat quickly. Didn't you see that Sanqi was drooling?
"Mmm... It's so delicious, Aunt Xu, your hot pot broth is so good."
"Mmm, delicious."
The whole family enjoyed the hot pot to the fullest, and they finished off more than ten pounds of mutton without leaving a single piece.
"A half-grown boy can eat his father out of house and home; that's absolutely right."
Aunt Xu looked at the clean plate of mutton and sighed.
"It's the age when we're growing and have a big appetite. My whole family has a good appetite."
Bonnie was quite moved; if her family hadn't eaten like this, they might have been able to buy another small house with the money they saved. But, in life, being able to eat well is a blessing. This is something Bonnie insists on; good health is more important than anything else.
Everyone reminisced about that hotpot meal for days, wondering when they could have it again. Then, the final exams ended, school let out for break, and Bonnie could finally hibernate.
There was no possibility of them hibernating during the winter; the fathers and daughters still went for morning exercise early in the morning.
Even in winter, the training ground was still full of people exercising. When Liu Jiu and her friends arrived, they were surprised to see Mu Nanfang.
"Mu Nanfang, what brings you here to exercise?"
Liu Jiu was very curious, as the training grounds in their Air Force compound were much better than those in their compound.
"Isn't it because I'm afraid of being lazy and unable to stick to it since there's no one to go with me?"
Mu Nanfang found himself a good excuse: he had put his companions out of his mind; they were no longer important.
"Really? Then come with us. We get up every morning to do our morning exercise."
Liu Jiu was quite happy to have a workout buddy, unlike Gu Xuanyi, who looked completely unwilling. He wouldn't have gotten up if he wasn't afraid of being put to extra training by his dad.
"Okay, I'll come every day from now on."
Mu Nanfang joined the Gu family's morning exercise team with Gu Xuanyu, instead of staying near Liu Jiu.
Because of Mu Nanfang's vigilance, Gu Ye and Xuan Yu did not notice anything amiss, mainly because Liu Jiu was too young, and neither of them thought about it in that direction.
After working up a good sweat, the morning exercise was almost over, and the people on the training field gradually dispersed.
Liu Jiu and the others went home to eat the sumptuous breakfast prepared by Aunt Xu, while Mu Nanfang ran back to the Air Force compound alone.
"Where did you go to train this morning? I didn't see you on the training field."
Mu Dongfang, the eldest brother of the Mu family, looked at Mu Nanfang with a puzzled expression. He also looked like he had just returned from exercising.
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